SPARTANBURG, S.C. – With less than three weeks remaining before the opening game, the Wofford football team continues to prepare for the 2011 season. The team had two practices on Monday, a single session on Tuesday afternoon and two practices again on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, the team worked for just over ninety minutes in the morning on the Gibbs Stadium field. In the afternoon, with the Carolina Panthers having closed camp at noon, the Terriers returned to the regular season practice fields. Both practices were held in shorts and shoulder pads.
Practices have been about the same each session, with individual position drills, skelly, and team segments. A different special teams unit is focused on each practice, such as kickoff cover or punting.
“Over the past three days there is no doubt that we are in better shape as we have conditioned every practice,” said head coach Mike Ayers. “We have had up tempo practices and we have caught a break with the weather this week. We had several guys that got worn out and missed a half practice but came back the next day. I think we had two real good practices today and we are learning over again how to practice at full speed. There are a lot of young kids who are doing well and I think it is a matter of those guys making progress and the ones returning being better than they were last year. Our point and our message to them is that if we work the same way we did last year, we will get the same results we got last year. But the goal this year is higher and therefore we have to work harder and smarter.”
Injuries have mounted over the past several days for the Terriers, with eleven players held out of the Wednesday afternoon practice. Of those, DB Rickman Davis will miss the season due to a knee injury. Josh Hillard has been moved from defensive line to tight end.
After one practice on Thursday afternoon, two-a-days continue on Friday, August 19. The second of three planned scrimmages will be held on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in Gibbs Stadium. The 2011 season begins with a road trip on September 3 at Presbyterian College.
